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Winemaker's Notes

Unbelievably, almost unbearably pretty; a gaudy overture of fruit yields to a firm, shapely underlay of mineral, which holds hands with an exquisite floweriness, and disappears meaningly.

Critical Acclaim

WS90

Wine Spectator - "A racy style, with a bracing freshness to the slate and sea salt flavors, which feature some peppery accents as well. Ripe peach and smoke mark the rich finish. Drink now through 2016."

Weingut Spreitzer Winery

In 1997 Andreas and Bernd Spreitzer leased the estate from their father, who remains active. Recently listed as a Gault-Millau discovery of the year, and now Feinschmecker’s newcomer of the year, and a new listing in DM-magazine’s 100-best German vintners list.

Here are the stats: 11.5 hectares, producing about 6,500 cases per year. 92% Riesling, 8% Pinot Noir. All harvesting is by hand. The must is cleaned by gravity for 24 hours before whole-cluster pressing. After fermentation (in wood or jacketed stainless steel, partly with ambient yeasts partly with cultured yeasts, depending on the vintage) the wines rest on their gross lees for some time before receiving their only filtration, with racking.
Soil types: Deep tertiary loam and loess
Grape varieties: 92% Riesling, 8% Spätburgunder
View all Weingut Spreitzer Wines

About Rheingau

The steep, south-facing slopes overlooking the Rhine river are some of the most enviable in Germany. The region's wines are based almost completely on Riesling and all picking is done by hand. A bit further south than the Mosel, Rheingau grapes get some stronger sun, which is evident by the richer wines produced.

Notable Facts

Rheingau wines will be found in brown, flute-shaped bottles, and, like all of Germany, adheres to the strict quality levels based on ripeness. Floral and mineral characteristics are commonly found in these wines, with rounder fruit flavors and fuller bodies than wines from its sister in quality, the Mosel. The Rheingau also grows a bit of Pinot Noir (called spätburgunder) for the production of red wines, but these are not found often outside of Europe.

About Germany

White Wine Guru

With some of the steepest and northernmost vineyards in the world, as well as the coolest climate, Germany produces some of the best white wines in the world, mainly Riesling. Delicate, age-worthy, intense and elegant are the typical descriptions for these wines. Note that “sweet” is not a common descriptor because the idea that most German wines are sweet is just not so. In fact, the majority of wines made in Germany are dry and more recently, the country is exporting value wines that are easy to drink, extremely food friendly and, luckily for some, containing labels that are easier to read!

The classification system of Germany is somewhat confusing. Like the rest of the old world, there's some hierarchy to it all. The categories are: Tafelwien (table wine), Landwein (land wine, similar to France's Vin de Pays) and the first “Q” level, QbA. QbA wines are easy-drinking and inexpensive – the only requirement being that the wine must come from one of Germany's thirteen official wine growing regions. The final level is QmP, which is the strictest level of German wines. The qualification consists of 6 levels, based on ripeness level at harvest, though that does not always translate into sweetness level.

Here are a few definitions to help in picking out a German QmP wine:

Kabinett

(cab-ee-NET)

The driest level, Kabinett is usually light-bodied, low to medium in alcohol, and fairly dry. Great everyday wine and food-friendly.

Spatlese

(shpate-LAY-zuh)

Grapes are picked a bit later than Kabinett (Spatlese means late harvest) and have a fuller, more intense body. Most wines of this level are dry although some are off-dry.

Auslese

(OWSE-lay-zuh)

Wines of this level are made from select grapes harvested even later than Spatlese. The grapes are selected in bunches to make sure they are of the perfect ripeness level. One step up in both body and sweetness, Auslese wines are balanced but with a bit more sweetness – perfect with spicy Indian food.

Beerenauslese

(bare-ehn-owse-lay-zuh)

The longer the words get, the higher up in sweetness level you rise. Like Auslese, the grapes are selected individually, but while Auslese is selected bunches, Beerenauslese are selected berries, and usually berries affected by botrytis, or noble rot, so you have an even more specific wine, which, in turn, increases both its sweetness level and its price.

Trockenbeerenauslese

(trok-ehn-bare-ehn-owse-lay-zuh)

Okay, so Trocken means dry in German and yet this wine is the sweetest of the German levels. The "trocken" comes into play as the berries picked for this wine are dried, intensifying the sugars. So the wine is made from late-harvest dried berries affected with botrytis - a combination that makes a decadent (and expensive!) bottle of wine. A treat if you are able to ever try one.

Alcohol By Volume Guide

Most wine ranges from 10-16% alcohol by volume. Some varietals tend to have higher (for example Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon) or lower alcohol levels (Pinot Noir and many white varietals), but there is always some variation from producer to producer. Some wine falls outside of this range, for instance Port weighs in closer to 20%, while Muscat and Riesling are usually a bit below 10%.

Wine Style Guide

Light & Crisp

Light to medium bodied wines that are high in acid and light to medium fruit. Typically no oak.